Late summer fun anyone?

Lockie is pictured here with a classmate, on a day trip to Days Bay a few days ago. The idea was that the kids of Years 3 & 4 would make their own boats and then sail them, and later assess their seaworthiness, etc. Lockie was not at school on the day the kids all paired up and made their boats, but he did spend a lot of time on the weekend at home, tucked away in his bedroom with a box of recycling materials and a roll of duct tape! They went on the ferry from Wellington on one way, and caught a bus back to school later in the day. I went along for a couple of hours before work started in the afternoon. I ended up being the 'class photographer' as Lockie's teacher spent much of the time in a small inflatable boat, retrieving boats that were heading for deeper waters. It was fun, and there were heaps of other mums whom I caught up with while I was there. The weather was perfect - not too sunny, and zero wind - a bonus in our fair city! And warm enough to go into the water, even in Autumn.

Yesterday I juggled the kids' care and went on a day course for work [leaving the house at 7:30am was a shock to the system!], an 'Orientation' course, mostly for newcomers to the City Council. Of the 20 or so of us there, I was the only one working for the Libraries, and nearly the only one who had worked for WCC for more than 3 months! Not sure why I never did this course when I first started, 4 years ago, but it was worth the wait. A few speakers in the morning filled us in on the intricate workings of the various parts of the council, we walked around the Civic Square - and under it even - and we spent the afternoon on a mystery bus tour around several council sites, including Wellington City Archives, Truby King House, and Wellington Emergency Management Office ['Ground Zero' for communications in Welly in the event of a civil emergency.] We also toured the Regional Aquatic Centre [aka Kilbirnie Pool], and got to look through small windows under the water level into the main pools - a bit pervy!

Have a favourite new song at present: 'Maybe' by Opshop. Very catchy. [And a lot trendier than the stoopid song stuck in my head all day yesterday: 'Here I Go Again' by Whitesnake!!]

Incidentally the lead singer in Opshop is a guy who used to sing with an old bandmate of Fraz, a long time ago when we first came to Welly, and 'The Gathering' thrashed their way around the inner city bogan bars. We lived on Courtenay Place at that time. A strange six months of sleeping days and waking nights as I recall. When the band broke up [drug charges against the lead singer had him flee the country or some such drama], the bass player went off and joined up with Jason, the Opshop singer - get it now? Anyway, Shay is doing who knows what now and we're not that interesting either! Ha ha!